Guardian of the Screen
by Marlred
Summary: This story picks up 10 years to the day after Zheng Xue Jing first acquired the Magic Screen in Episode 1 of the television series “Fox in the Screen” “Ping Li Hu” 屏裡狐 from Mainland China.
1. Guardian of the Screen Chapter 1

This story picks up 10 years to the day after Zheng Xue Jing first acquired the Magic Screen in Episode 1 of the television series "Fox in the Screen" "Ping Li Hu" 屏裡狐 from Mainland China.

**Chapter 1**

"Xue Jing Sister! Look at all the Spider Lilies!" Xiao Hei exclaimed. He bounced excitedly next to her on the wide porch in his characteristically puppyish demeanor.

Zheng Xue Jing looked up at the sky in wonder. Hundreds of the bright red blossoms rained down from the sky, converging on the area of her house and business. The shops in that neighborhood emptied as patrons ran outside to stand in the street, fascinated by the phenomenon.

"Where did they all come from?" asked her brother Mu Jing, the King of their country. He had left her store a moment before, and now also stood in the street, looking up, extreme bafflement on his face.

"Yu Yan?" Zheng thought to herself. It had to be him, but what did it mean? Why would he send so many flowers from the garden of the Spider Lily Goddess? Wouldn't he get into trouble?

"Maybe he's thinking of me?" she asked herself hesitantly.

Somehow that didn't seem quite right. He had at least two months left on his contract with the Spider Lily Goddess. Soon he would be able to see her in person, if he so chose. All this time, over the past ten years, he had never done anything like this. There were times she had doubted that he would remember her at all, thinking that he might block his memory again, like he had done with Yuan Tao.

This event cast those doubts aside. Somehow, in some way, Yu Yan must have decided to be a part of her life again. Zheng Xue Jing smiled with delight, raising her arms to catch a falling Spider Lily blossom out of the air, and bringing it to her nose to inhale its sweet fragrance.

In two months she would find out if he still loved her. She knew that she needed to examine her own feelings. After all, ten years is a long time for a human, but based on the thrill of seeing these flowers floating through the air, she knew she desperately wanted to see Yu Yan again.

"Will I look old to him now?" she wondered, tucking the Spider Lily behind her ear, and turning back inside to find a mirror. She raced upstairs to her bedroom to examine her reflection. She wasn't a very vain person, she didn't spend much time staring at herself in the mirror, so she found herself unsure of whether there was a noticeable difference in her appearance from ten years ago. Maybe a laugh line at the corners of her eyes?

She had lived a life of relative ease for these last ten years. No hardships to speak of with her brother becoming the King, and her own personal Black Fox Demon guarding her night and day. She had refused to marry, and thus had avoided the rigors of motherhood.

The whole country had been very peaceful once Yuan Tao had left and Prince Mu Su Yu had been killed during his attempted coup. King Mu Jing had instructed his guards to be on the alert for anyone matching Yuan Tao's or Qing Yu's description, but there had been no sightings. Even the borderlands were calm, thanks to the peace treaty that the late King had struck with the Mu Lao Clan to the north.

She turned to look at the Magic Screen whose presence dominated her bedroom. "It's all thanks to this!" she thought to herself. Her adoptive father, Zheng Yuan Shan, or Wu Jiao as he was known to supernatural beings, had left this screen in her care. The image of three painted foxes still graced the screen, even though those demons had been freed from their contracts long ago.

Zheng hadn't had much occasion to use the screen since, though she had been unable to resist the temptation to finish the painting of the black fox on the screen. Every time she had looked at the screen, the missing hind legs had bothered her.

She lightly caressed the foxes painted on the screen with her fingertips. The White Fox Demon, Bai Sheng, was no longer a demon. He had given up his magic pearl of 1,000 years of meditation in order to save the life of her brother Mu Jing. Bai Sheng had said that Mu Jing was the only one who could peacefully rule this country, so he had sacrificed his consciousness to better the lives of countless humans. Zheng missed him very much. She hoped he was living a happy life as a simple fox under the care of her old frenemy Qiong Hua. They had both departed shortly after Yu Yan, to live in the countryside.

"Yu Yan" Zheng whispered longingly to the screen, her fingers lingering over the image of the red fox. Was it her imagination, or was the screen now radiating a faint glow? It was broad daylight outside, so it was hard to really tell for sure. She frowned at it, studying the screen from different angles. Maybe it was just the light at this time of day. She walked away from it, feeling uneasy.

That night, as she prepared for bed, she realized that she couldn't sleep. She had decorated her room with multiple vases full of the bright red Spider Lily blossoms that had fallen into the garden at the rear of her house. There had been so many that the garden lawn was carpeted by them. The sight of them filling up her bedroom filled her with excitement. She wondered if she would be able to sleep at all for the next two months.

Giving up on sleep, she made her way to the covered pavilion in the rear garden, taking a seat at the square table.

"Xiao Hei, have a drink with me!" Zheng said to her faithful friend. She poured two small cups of clear rice wine, handing one to him. He grinned at her, shaking his shaggy black and purple-streaked hair out of his face, and then tipped his cup back, drinking the contents quickly in one gulp.

"Don't drink too fast, Xiao Hei" Zheng warned. She lightly sipped at her cup. She had gotten better at controlling the amount she drank, but Xiao Hei still had a tendency to gobble up any food in front of him, and gulp down any drink. He had never corrected this trait.

"Sorry, Xue Jing Sister" said Xiao Hei sheepishly. "I'm just so excited about my brother Yu Yan coming back soon! Surely that is what all of these flowers mean" he gestured to the many Spider Lily blooms that still lay on the grass out in the garden. Zheng had collected many, but those were only a fraction of the total.

She smiled at him, taking another sip of her drink. Her heart beat a little faster, daring to hope. She had drunken the entire bottle before she felt at all sleepy. Xiao Hei had turned into a small black puppy an hour before, and now lay curled up next to her, fast asleep. She pillowed her head on her arms, laying down on the table top, and drifted into a drunken slumber.

Very shortly afterward, she was awoken from her sleep by a burst of bright light and noise. She blinked her eyes stupidly, trying to make sense of what she was seeing. It must be the deepest, darkest, part of the night, yet a glow like the setting sun was radiating out of her bedroom windows.

"Xiao Hei!" she said sharply, nudging the black puppy that lay sleeping next to her. The puppy sprang up, and then ran up the wooden stairs towards her bedroom. She heard barking, and the sound of men yelling.

Zheng lifted herself up, stumbling over her chair, and then careened her way up the staircase. Shadowy figures burst out of her windows and flew off into the night. By the time she made it up the stairs, Xiao Hei had turned back into his demon form, and held two struggling demons, one in each hand.

"The other thieves all escaped!" Xiao Hei said worriedly, "but I managed to catch these two!"

Zheng regarded the demons attempting to wrest themselves out of Xiao Hei's grasp. She couldn't help but think they looked vaguely familiar. She pointed at the man wearing long green robes, with a silver diadem resting on his forehead.

"You look like a Dream God" she accused him shakily, the alcohol in her system making her speech slur.

The man harrumphed.

"Still drinking too much I see!" said the other man in an insulting tone of voice.

Zheng turned her bleary gaze on him. His scarlet hair stood out vividly against the black snakeskin of his poncho.

"You better be careful" Zheng warned him, "or I will lock you up in my screen!" She shook her finger at him threateningly.

"Oh no, not again!" he exclaimed. He twisted in Xiao Hei's grasp. The poncho ripped, freeing him, and he jumped out of the window, shirtless, flying off into the night.

Xiao Hei looked stupidly at the black fabric in his hand, taken by surprise. The Dream God took advantage of this distraction, hitting Xiao Hei's arm, knocking it loose. He turned and ran for the door.

"I'll get you!" Xiao Hei yelled, running after him. A few minutes later he came back, holding a dark green cloak.

"He got away by untying his cloak" Xiao Hei reported with disappointment.

Zheng sat down on her bed, trying to make sense of the situation through wits dulled by alcohol.

"I don't get it" said Xiao Hei in confusion. "There must have been a dozen thieves here, but all they wanted to do was run away. They could have overpowered me and taken the screen if they had acted together."

Zheng frowned, holding her aching head in her hands. She then laid down on the bed, curling up into a fetal position.

"Can you watch it for a few hours?" she asked Xiao Hei. She desperately needed sleep if she wanted her mind to work properly.


	2. Guardian of the Screen Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

Zheng Xue Jing stood outside the palace, waiting for the guards to open the doors to her. It was still early in the morning, and the air was cool and fresh. She inhaled it gratefully, still trying to clear her head of this morning's hangover. She hoped her brother would have tea ready.

She walked to his bedroom and stood outside the door, calling for his Eunuch to get permission to enter. He stuck his head out of the doors to get a look at her, and then disappeared back inside.

She heard the Eunuch's voice through the door, "Princess Jing Rui is here to see you, Your Majesty."

"Again?" Zheng heard her brother ask. "I just saw her yesterday!" There was a silent pause and then he spoke again. "All right, all right, let her in!"

The door opened and her brother's servant ushered her inside. She slipped past him and went to sit down on the bed next to her brother. He was still in his sleeping gown, but sitting up, sipping at a cup of tea. She grabbed it out of his hand and downed the contents, then sighed in relief.

"More! Bring more!" she ordered the Eunuch.

King Mu Jing looked at her in disbelief, then started laughing. "What were you up to last night?" he asked incredulously.

"I drank too much" she admitted.

"Mmmm-hmmm" he replied with a lift of his eyebrow. "I can see that."

"Some thieves broke in while I was drunk" she told him, eagerly pouring another cup of tea for herself from the pot the Eunuch offered her.

Her brother looked at her in alarm. "What did they take?" he asked worriedly.

Zheng shrugged. "As near as I can tell they didn't take anything. It looked like they were after the Magic Screen, but when Xiao Hei got up there, they all ran for it."

Mu Jing frowned. "It's too dangerous for you to keep that powerful artifact there. I've been telling you for years that you need to move into the palace!" he said in frustration.

"I'm NOT moving into the palace!" Zheng insisted stubbornly. "I WANT my freedom!"

Mu Jing grabbed his head with both hands and glared at her.

"Why are you SO stubborn?" he asked, his eyes round with annoyance.

"Don't worry so much!" Zheng told him. "Xiao Hei is there to protect me."

Her brother sighed. "So why are you here so early to tell me about this?" he asked.

"You said to tell you right away if anything happens with the screen" she answered, shrugging. She grabbed a moon cake from the tray her brother's servant offered and took a bite. "Mmmmmmm, so good" she commented through a full mouth.

Her brother laughed at her again. "You just wanted breakfast!"

"Can I take some back with me for Xiao Hei?" she asked.

"Fine, fine" her brother answered. "Just get out so I can get dressed!" He threw his pillow at her, hitting her in the face.

She jumped up off the bed. "I can see when I am not wanted!" she exclaimed in mock anger. She threw the pillow back at him and stalked out of the room, still eating her moon cake. She stood on the lawn outside her brother's room, finishing her moon cake and enjoying the cool stillness of the morning air.

Her peaceful moment was disturbed suddenly by a loud crashing noise, coming from outside the palace. She looked up, startled. That was in the direction of her house! She took off running, impatiently waiting for the guards to open the gates and let her out, before dashing to her house. Behind her she could hear Mu Jing yelling for her to stop, but she ignored him.

By the time she got to her street, she could see a bright orange light glowing up from where her roof used to be. It looked like two suns were rising that morning. She held her shaky hand to her mouth, and then doubled over trying to catch her breath.

"Xiao Hei!" she exclaimed in alarm, through her gasps. She stumbled forward tiredly, trying to get to him.

Through the orange glow she could see dark figures rising up into the air. The number was beyond counting. Soon the sky was filled with dark shapes, all floating away from her house.

"What _is _this?" she asked aloud to no one in particular.

She was struck by the similarity from yesterday. Countless flowers floated in the sky above her house yesterday morning. This morning countless black shapes dotted the sky above her house. It couldn't be a coincidence. Yu Yan had sent her a warning, but she was too dense to understand it.

As she got closer to her house she could make out more detail of these dark shapes. Some were humanoid, others skeletal with skulls wreathed in flame. Still others were winged and reptilian in appearance.

Her jaw dropped in alarm. She suddenly recalled the events of the first day after she had received the Magic Screen. An army of demons and monsters had descended on her house, seeking to steal the Magic Screen. She had locked them all inside with the instructions given her by Bai Sheng.

She struggled to remember what he had said about the conditions of the screen.

"Once a demon is locked in the screen, it _automatically_ enters a ten year master-slave contract" Bai Sheng's voice floated in her memory.

"After the ten years are over, the Demon is free" she whispered in horror.

That had been ten years ago today.


	3. Guardian of the Screen - Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

"Xiao Hei! Xiao Hei!" Zheng yelled. She could see from here that her house was destroyed. There must be hundreds of demons and monsters hovering in the air around it. She had left Xiao Hei there alone. She felt her stomach clench in fear, and started running towards her house again.

She almost made it to her porch before a neighbor grabbed her, dragging her backwards.

"You can't go in there! It's too dangerous!" said the man who owned the fabric shop next door.

"Let me go!" Zheng demanded. "I have to get Xiao Hei!" She wrestled out of his grasp, and ran towards her front door.

Just then Xiao Hei came stumbling out of the building, carrying the Magic Screen on his back. His clothing looked shredded and singed. He had a cut on his cheek, and his face was blackened with soot. Zheng ran to him, trying to help him out into the street.

"Take the screen!" Xiao Hei panted desperately, limping towards her.

She could hear a guttural growl coming from inside the building that sent shivers down her spine. A monstrous face appeared in the doorway. Two yellow tusks protruded above his lips, which were curled in a snarl. His bristly hair was shaped into a stripe down the center of his head, the bare skin a mottled greenish-grey in color. His ears jutted out like bat wings, much higher than his skull, decorated with a single red ball which bobbled as he moved. He stalked forward, his malevolent gaze fixed on Xiao Hei. He hadn't yet noticed Zheng Xue Jing.

"Magic Screen, lock up this demon!" Zheng yelled, lunging forward to place her hand on the screen.

The monster's face turned to look at her in panic, then started to run away, too late. A swirling vortex of magic sucked him into the screen which was glowing with orange light.

A raspy voice shouted from inside the house. "It's the girl! The girl has the screen!"

There followed a great noise of bodies clambering in the opposite direction. Zheng ran inside, beckoning to Xiao Hei to follow her, chasing the retreating demonic figures.

"Magic Screen, lock up these demons!" She screamed at the top of her lungs, pointing at the demons on the staircase with one hand, and holding onto the Magic Screen with the other. A few more demons were sucked into the orange glow of the screen.

She dragged Xiao Hei along behind her, holding onto the screen like a lifeline, running headlong up the staircase. Most of the roof was gone, splintered beams from the roof joists littered the floor, and the walls leaned at a dangerous tilt. In the open sky above, she could see demonic shapes all around flying away from her house, fleeing the screen.

"Magic Screen, lock up these demons!" Zheng yelled again, pointing up into the air.

The magic swirled yet again, the vortex widening out into a two block radius, sucking in the demons that it touched. Zheng sank to her knees, her energy draining out of her as she strove to push the range of the magical vortex. There were many demons who had fled outside of the radius. She glared in frustration at the retreating figures.

Gritting her teeth, she poured as much energy as she could muster into the screen, seeking to expand her range through sheer force of will. The wooden floor rushed up to meet her, right before the world turned black.


	4. Guardian Chapter4

Zheng awoke from her nap, sitting up and stretching in Qiong Hua's bed. She yawned hugely, then swung her legs off of the bed and hopped down from it. She breathed in deeply, inhaling the cooking smells that came from outside. Something smelled delicious.

She poked her head out of the door. Several of her demons were squatting on the ground around the outdoor stove, chatting quietly. One demon stood over it, stirring something on the inverted cast iron plate. The flat cast iron plate next to it held a large pot with a heavy lid that jumped slightly now and again. The liquid inside of it must be boiling.

Zheng walked over to the table in the front garden, reaching for the teapot, only to discover that it was empty. She groaned, feeling very thirsty after her nap.

"Does the kettle have hot water?" Zheng asked the demons around the stove.

One of the demons picked up the kettle off of the ground, and held it up to show her. He winced apologetically, shaking it to show that it was empty. She sighed, and then grabbed the kettle from his hand.

"I'll go for water" she volunteered morosely.

Qiong Hua's well was a little distant from the house. Zheng could still hear the demons in the front garden, but she could no longer see them, as the bamboo trees of the forest hid them from her sight. It made her feel uneasy. She scanned the forest around her suspiciously, before turning to work the crank and lower the bucket down into the dark tunnel of the well.

She lugged the full bucket of water up over the lip of the well, trying not to slosh it on herself. She was so thirsty, she couldn't resist taking a long drink of water directly from the bucket. After her thirst was sated, she reached for the kettle.

"That's funny" she said aloud to herself. She could have sworn she had placed the kettle on the ground to her right. She turned around to look for it. It was a few paces away, directly behind her.

"Huh" she said.

She picked up the kettle, examining it. It seemed okay. Maybe she just didn't remember correctly where she had left it. She shrugged, and then filled the kettle with water from the well's bucket, replacing the bucket when she was finished.

As she turned back to the house, now lugging the full kettle, the wind picked up suddenly, blowing her skirts around her legs and then dissipated just as quickly. Zheng paused, and looked around the forest again. She still felt uneasy, but couldn't figure out why. She hurried back to the house, constantly looking over her shoulder.

A white fox reclining on the low stone wall greeted her with a sharp yip as she came through the gate.

"Hello, Bai Sheng" she said in a gentle voice. "Did you have a good nap too?" she asked him.

The White Fox made a curious noise that almost sounded like human speech. He seemed to be saying yes. Zheng chuckled, and then walked past him, lugging the kettle over to the outdoor stove. She handed it to the Demon in charge of cooking, and then walked over to the table to sit for a minute. Fetching the water had taken a toll on her energy. She still wasn't fully recovered from her outpouring of grief.

She pillowed her head on her arms and thought about Xiao Hei, wondering where he was right now. Yu Yan had told her after she first woke up that Xiao Hei had left to bury Qiong Hua next to her mother's grave, back at the Capital. They were to stay here and wait for him to come back. Yu Yan had also told her that he would be patrolling the forest around the house. She didn't see him in the garden so he must still be out there.

Her reverie was interrupted by the demon at the stove.

"Master, the kettle is boiling" he informed her. "Shall I make tea?" he asked politely, holding his hand out for the teapot that was next to her elbow.

Zheng sat up hurriedly. "Yes, of course!" she replied. She grabbed the teapot and brought it over to him. She left it in his care, and then went back inside the empty house, feeling a sudden urge to use the chamberpot.

After she finished, she put the lid on the pot, and then circumspectly carried it outside the house. She needed to empty it far enough away from the house to avoid embarrassment.

"Master, we are ready to eat" the demon cook informed her.

The demons were all seated at the table, bowls of rice in front of them, and a large dish of chicken and vegetables at the center of the table.

"You go ahead and eat, I'll be back in a minute" she told them.

They started devouring their food as she walked into the forest, taking a different path than the one that led to the well. Once she had gotten far away enough that she thought they wouldn't be able to smell it, she took the lid off of the chamber pot and placed it on the ground. Then she hoisted the pot in her hands, flinging the contents into the trees next to the path. She put the lid back on and began the walk back to the house. She was almost there when she was surprised by Yu Yan.

"What are you doing out here alone?" Yu Yan angrily demanded to know. He jumped down from the top of a bamboo tree and landed in front of her.

"Uhhhh, I had something that I had to take care of" she replied awkwardly, trying to hide the chamberpot in her hands.

He glared at her, his eyes flicking down to the pot and then back up to her face.

"Take someone with you next time" he ordered her curtly, abruptly turning on his heel and stalking towards the house.

Zheng scurried along behind him, trying to catch up to the fast pace he set. Suddenly he stopped, throwing his arms out wide to block her from proceeding forward.

"What is it?" she asked, trying to peer around him.

"Don't... move..." Yu Yan whispered.

Zheng felt chills go down her spine. Timidly she pushed his wide sleeve aside and peeked out from underneath his arm. There was something wrong with the demons at the table. Something about their facial expressions looked almost feral. They started growling at each other, their shoulders hunched, hackles raised.

Zheng gasped, frightened, and dropped the pot she was holding. There was a loud crash of breaking porcelain. A half-dozen heads all turned sharply towards her, alerted by the noise she had made. Their eyes looked hungry.

She dropped Yu Yan's sleeve to block her face, her heart pounding in her chest. Yu Yan was pushing her backwards, as he backed up slowly. She could hear the demons jumping forward, fanning out, attempting to circle around Yu Yan.

"Order them back into the screen!" Yu Yan directed her, blasting fire at a demon who jumped towards him.

"Return to the screen!" Zheng yelled. The demons didn't seem to hear her. Another jumped at her from the side, but then was caught in an orange glowing cable and pulled backwards.

"ALL of you, BACK into the screen!" Zheng yelled again, putting the force of her will behind the words.

A vortex of magical energy encompassed the demons and sucked them all back into the house, where the Magic Screen was kept.

Zheng breathed out a sigh of relief, and then stumbled wearily, her energy drained. She felt Yu Yan's arms around her shoulders, supporting her to keep her from falling. They walked into the garden, Zheng going over to the rain barrel to rinse her hands and splash water on her face. She looked inside the house to check on the screen. It appeared to be okay. She sat down at the table across from Yu Yan and looked around in bewilderment.

"What could have happened to my demons?" she asked Yu Yan. "They were fine a few minutes ago."

A little white fox jumped up onto the table top, walking across the surface on his small delicate paws. He placed a paw underneath the large dish that still held the remnants of dinner, and then flipped the dish over, spilling the contents all over the table.

"Bai Sheng! You naughty fox!" Zheng scolded, but Yu Yan held up his hand for her to stop.

"Do you think this food was tampered with?" He asked the fox seriously.

The fox nodded its head, giving out two small barks.

Yu Yan nodded, pursing his lips. "Did you see who did it?" he asked.

The fox shook its head from side to side, giving a small whine.

Yu Yan dropped his forehead into his hand, his elbow rested on the table. He massaged his head with his fingers.

"We are dealing with a very tricky opponent" he stated.

Zheng frowned. If Yu Yan was worried, then it must be really bad. She decided to let him think for a minute before she asked any more questions.

Quietly, she gathered up the dirty bowls from the table top, and wiped off the mess of polluted food. Then she found the clean cups and poured out tea for the both of them. Yu Yan took his cup without even looking at her. He took a sip, then absentmindedly tugged at the lapels of his robes, loosening them.

Zheng sipped at her own cup of tea, turned towards the house, wrapped in her own thoughts about the screen. All of the sudden, she began to feel very peculiar. Her heartbeat accelerated, and she could feel a flush working its way up her neck to her face.

"Why does my skin feel so hot?" she asked aloud. She looked down at the tea cup in her hand. "Oh no!" she exclaimed. "Yu Yan, don't drink the tea!"

She turned back to face him. He was staring at her intently, his eyes turning yellow. His shoulders rounded as he bent over in a predatory stance, dropping his empty cup. His expression changed into one of feral hunger.

Zheng's stomach clenched with fear. She was in serious danger. Yu Yan was not controlled by the Magic Screen. She hopped out of her seat, running for the house. Maybe she could make it to the screen in time to lock him in it.

He appeared in a puff of red smoke directly in front of her, grabbing her by the throat. She pulled at his arm, feeling the futility of her action against his supernatural strength.

"Let go of me" she gasped. "Yu Yan... please!"

He dragged her closer to him, his hand still clasped around her throat. He leaned his head down to her neckline, behind her ear, and inhaled deeply. Then he breathed out a long sigh. The moist warm air from his mouth tickled the sensitive skin at the back of her neck. She felt the little hairs standing on end.

"Yu Yan" she gasped again weakly. She could feel a feverish warmth in the skin all over her entire body. Surely she had been poisoned.

Yu Yan wrapped his arm around her back, pressing her body against him. The hand around her throat moved to her chin, holding her face still, as he brought his lips to hers. They moved sensuously over top of hers, his arm tightening still more around her body. She felt herself being moved bodily into the house, her toes dragging on the ground.

There was a falling sensation, and then the bed materialized underneath her as Yu Yan continued to kiss her ardently. He clawed blindly at her clothing, shredding her dress, and leaving long scratches on her abdomen. She whimpered into his mouth, unable to pull away, but he was heedless of her distress. His own robes disappeared and soon his naked flesh pressed against hers. The salt from his skin stung in the cuts left on her stomach.

She pushed against his shoulders with her hands, but she was too weak from the poison to be able to move him. The more he pressed against her, the weaker her body felt, until she was sure she would melt from the fever that enveloped her. His lips traveled from hers, down her chin, to her neck, biting her lightly. She gave a small cry at the painful sensation, which changed to a gasp as she felt his tongue circling the bite.

"Are you going to hurt me?" she asked worriedly.

He pulled away to look down at her. He nodded his head yes, his yellow demon eyes wearing that hungry expression that he had obtained after drinking the tea. She felt him moving something down below her line of vision, and then a hard object pressed against the tender flesh of her inner thigh. Her eyes grew wide with alarm. Then she felt his hand slide between her thighs, moving upwards, his fingers exploring her most private area.

"Yu Yan! What are you doing?" she asked in astonishment. Then she squirmed as she felt what his fingers were doing down there. The fever in her body intensified.

"Yu... Yu... Yu Yan" she breathed. Her mind had stopped working, now she could only feel. She closed her eyes. Surely she was about to die. She had thought death would be more painful.

Suddenly a lancing pain drove through her, centered between her thighs. Her eyes popped open to see Yu Yan moving his body on top of hers. Expecting her consciousness to fade, she was surprised when it intensified. Yu Yan's naked shoulder was right below her eye level. Sweat glistened on his skin, as his shoulder moved up and down in her vision. His whole body rubbed against hers. He breathed heavily into her ear on the left side of her head, making a low moaning sound, and his fingers clenched against her shoulders.

Something hard was moving inside of her, where that lancing pain had been. The pain had dulled a bit now, but that area was still tender. The movement inside of her was very distracting. The more she focused on it, the more she felt it.

Yu Yan moaned in her ear again, setting her teeth on edge. She clenched her jaw, feeling a feverish chill travel in waves from her neck down to her breasts, then down to the area between her legs, and then down her legs to her toes.

"Yu Yan" she gasped, her hands grasped at his back feebly.

"Xue Jing!" He groaned into her ear, pushing himself hard against her.

The lancing pain resurfaced, causing Zheng to cry out. That seemed to drive him into a frenzy. He moved his pelvis against hers at an accelerated pace for a few minutes, his breath coming in gasps, then finally shuddered, crying out wordlessly. He flopped down tiredly on top of her, and she felt the hard object inside of her diminish and withdraw.

Yu Yan then slid off of her, laying close beside her. He draped his arm over her chest, nestling his face in her neck and hair. He kissed her shoulder, stroking her arm with his hand. He kissed her shoulder again, and again. Zheng turned her head to look at him.

"The spell... hasn't worn off..." he told her in between kisses. "I can't... stop... touching you."

His hands moved to her breast, his thumb circling the nipple, and then gently pinched it. His kisses trailed from her shoulder down to her other breast. He licked at her nipple until it was hard, and then started suckling it like a babe. Zheng watched him in fascination. A line of fire burned from her nipple down to the sensitive area between her legs.

"Yu Yan?" Zheng asked hesitantly.

"Mmmmm" Yu Yan answered, his lips still busy on her breasts.

"What is happening?" she asked.

There was a wet sucking sound as he pulled himself off of her breast and looked at her face.

"We have been hit with a Lust spell" he explained briefly, before going back to fondling her breasts, licking and kissing them while massaging them with his hands.

"Shouldn't we... try to fight it?" she asked him breathily.

He didn't answer her, but stared at her face intently as he slid his hand down her body until his fingers probed between her legs. She groaned loudly, closing her eyes. He stroked her there, slowly and firmly, his fingers sliding in and out of her while his thumb circled the bud of skin above. The fever was enveloping her body again.

"Yu Yan!" she gasped desperately.

He was unrelenting. His fingers continued to stroke her mercilessly as he studied her face. She soon lost her awareness of everything around her, only able to concentrate on the pleasurable tightening sensation between her legs. She grabbed at the sheets underneath her, unconsciously moving her pelvis against Yu Yan's hand. As the pleasure peaked, she cried out, her whole body shuddering.

She opened her eyes, to see Yu Yan staring at her hungrily, his eyes still yellow. He leaned down and lightly kissed her belly, licking the scratches his claws had left, trailing kisses back up to her breasts. He thoroughly kissed every inch of both, and then made his way up to her neck, nipping and sucking at the sensitive skin there.

"It's too much, Yu Yan" Zheng complained breathlessly.

He brought his face directly in front of hers, staring into her eyes. Then he pressed his lips on hers, kissing her deeply, his tongue invading her mouth.

A loud bark outside the house startled them both. Yu Yan sat up, listening intently. Then he grabbed Zheng's arm and pulled her instantly to the Magic Screen, placing her hand on it. Zheng shook her head, trying to get her wits about her.

"No matter what, do not take your hands off of the screen" he ordered her in a whisper in her ear. He was standing behind her. Her dress hung off her in tatters, while he was completely naked.

The door to the house slowly creaked open. She sensed Yu Yan tense up behind her. They both looked intently at the opening, waiting to see who would come inside.

There was no visible invader, but a change in air pressure alerted Zheng that someone _was_ there. She heard Yu Yan sniffing the air from behind her.

"If the screen moves under your hands, order it to lock up that demon" Yu Yan whispered quietly into her ear.

Zheng clenched her hands tightly on the wooden framework of the screen, hoping that it wouldn't be ripped out of her grasp. Unexpectedly, Yu Yan shot a stream of fire at what looked like empty air. There was a thumping sound of feet coming down on a wooden floor. Yu Yan shot another flame at that noise and was rewarded by the sound of a woman cursing.

"You asked for it!" exclaimed the mysterious disembodied voice.

A puff of glittery pink powder appeared from out of nowhere, shooting directly into Yu Yan's face. He coughed, and tried to wipe the powder away. The woman's voice laughed malevolently.

Yu Yan blinked and shook his head. Then he grabbed ahold of Zheng's ruined dress and ripped it off, tossing it away. He embraced Zheng from behind, pressing his body against hers. She felt a hard object digging into the flesh of her back.

Yu Yan groaned behind her, squeezing her breasts with rough hands. He forced her to lean over, her cheek pressed against the screen, her hands still clinging tightly to the frame. He pushed her legs wide apart, standing in between them, and then she felt him enter her body again. He grabbed her hips and roughly pushed himself inside, deeper than before.

Zheng cried out, still sore from earlier. It was difficult to hold onto the screen while he was doing this. She grit her teeth and held on steadfastly, trying not to be distracted by Yu Yan's hedonic moaning and panting, as he rythmically pumped himself into her.

She felt her grip on the screen begin to weaken, and her hands begin to slide. No! Wait! The screen was moving!

"Magic Screen, lock up that demon!" Zheng groaned emphatically.

The orange light flowed from the screen, sucking in the invisible demon woman who had plagued them with Lust.

Once the light dissipated, Yu Yan rutted against her for a moment more, then squeezed her hips tightly with his strong fingers, pushing himself as far inside of her as he could and holding there. He gave a loud sigh and relaxed, finally stopping his onslaught.

Zheng slumped against the screen, too tired to stand.

"Xue Jing! Are you okay?" He asked her worriedly.

He then picked her up and carried her over to the bed, carefully covering her with the blanket, tucking it around her like a cocoon, and propping her up against the headboard.

"I am sorry I hurt you" he said apologetically.

Zheng looked up into his anxious face and couldn't be angry with him. She took a deep breath, nerving herself up to ask about what was really bothering her.

"Yu Yan?" she asked hesitantly. "Am I no longer pure?"

Yu Yan's expression changed from worry to heartbreak.

"I'm sorry, Xue Jing" he whispered contritely, "I should have controlled myself."

"I understand" she consoled him. "That was a very powerful spell. It's just..." she stopped and looked away, unable to continue.

"You were saving yourself" Yu Yan finished her sentence for her. He closed his eyes with a pained expression.

"I thought I might be able to become a God like you and father, if I kept myself pure" she explained to him. "As a mortal, I will soon start to age" she said sadly.

Yu Yan looked at her with an incredulous expression. "Don't you know what you are?" he asked.

She looked at him with confusion.

"We just sat with Qiong Hua as she died of old age" he stated, looking at her expectantly.

"I thought she was poisoned with Bai Tou Weng" Zheng replied.

"You and I have been hunting demons together for fifty years!" Yu Yan exclaimed.

"Has it been that long?" she asked, feeling dazed.

Yu Yan shook his head impatiently, then closed his eyes, and blew out an exasperated breath. His took a deep breath in, his expression firming into resolve before opening them again.

"Your mortal body died long ago" he informed her. "You were reborn in the Spider Lily as a half-god."

"Wha..." Zheng tried to speak, but wasn't sure where to start.

"I think Wu Jiao entrusted the Magic Screen to you in order to help you prove yourself worthy of becoming a God" Yu Yan speculated.

"How...?" She barely managed to form the word.

"I plan to stay with you forever" Yu Yan looked in her eyes as he said this, staring into her soul.

"Yu Yan" Zheng said softly, forgetting her questions.

Yu Yan grabbed her by the shoulders. "Tell me you love me" he demanded, still holding her gaze.

"I DO" she responded fervently. "I do love you!"

Yu Yan's face broke into a rare smile, exposing his perfectly even white teeth. He pulled her into an embrace, holding her tightly.

"Xue Jing!" he whispered into her hair. "I love you too."

Zheng Xue Jing felt her heart swell in her chest. She had waited so long to hear those words.


End file.
